Wednesday, December 14, 2011

This months homework assignment form Le Professeur Gothique is to write about comfort and joy. To talk about the things that bring you comfort especially now that the busy holiday season and cold weather is upon us.

Yup it's winter out there.

Here are just a few things that make me feel nurtured.1. A good book (or two or three) to curl up with. Right now I'm reading Women Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, and the Victoria House by Judith Flanders.

2. Journalling. I try to write everyday, and most days I succeed. 3. A warm bubble bath. At the end of a long day (especially when it's -20 out) it's so soothing.4. Cookies I baked myself.5. Soup and a grilled cheese sandwich. Brings me back to being a kid again.6. Putting my iPod on shuffle. You get to hear a random selection of fabulous songs you are bound to love.7. A comfy t-shirt.8. A warm cup of coffee on a winter morning.

Coffeeeeee

9. My pet bunny Pippin.10. And last, but not least Cuddling with my BF! Most comforting of all. :)

Monday, December 12, 2011

I learnt about the accent challenge from the blogs The Everyday Goth and the Walrus Room. It was originally a Tumblr meme, but is now making it's way around some blogs. I think it's loads of fun, and so interesting to hear people's voices. Here's my post.

Friday, December 9, 2011

I received a request for a post topic from my good friend Ms.Chloe. She asked if I could research the history of figgy pudding, find out what it is, and why are the carolers so demanding of it in the classic Christmas song "We Wish You a Merry Christmas"? I have often wondered about this myself. An excellent suggestion Ms.Chloe!

Figgy pudding is a close relative of plum pudding and the traditional Christmas pudding, and is probably just as old. The three names are sometimes used interchangeable though they are actually somewhat different. Both date back to medieval times, when it originally started as a porridge served on Christmas morning including chopped raisins, plums or figs, and suet. As time went on bread crumbs were added, then later eggs and eventually they became the puddings we know today. For American readers, please note the word "pudding" is not specific to custards in the UK, but used generally to mean "dessert".
Christmas and figgy puddings are more like a cake, though are steamed rather than baked, so are quite moist. They are a dense dessert made with chopped figs (in the case of the figgy kind) raisins and dates (in the case of Christmas pudding), flour, sugar, eggs, brandy or rum and spices. The batter is cooked in a bowl, or bundt pan, inside a larger vessel of boiling water, effectively steming the dish and cooking it very evenly. It can even be cooked weeks ahead of time, as like fruitcake it can last a long time. Both types are sometimes doused in either brandy or rum and set alight for a visual treat. There is also a lovely sweet sauce, something like an icing, that is often drizzled overtop, which I find quite lovely.

Mmm Christmas Pudding..

As for why the carolers are so demanding..I'm not sure about their rudeness, but it was a tradition from at least Medieval times for the poor to go from house to house singing at this time of year, in return for food or drink (also called wassailing). "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" is a 16th century British West Country carol that mentions the delight of figgy pudding. While I have tried Christmas pudding (and enjoy it), I have not tried figgy pudding so it remains a mystery to me. It must be good though to have people demand it so much.

Here is a little video from Horrible Histories (love these guys) about the history of caroling.

Have you tried figgy or Christmas pudding? What are your thoughts of it?

Monday, December 5, 2011

I missed the deadline for posting for Sophistique Noir's monthly fashion theme, but decided I would post my winter outerwear anyway. I apologize for not posting recently, so thought it was high time I did one.

It gets pretty cold up here in Canada during the winter so good outerwear is a must. It can get as low as -40 some days (today was a balmy -25).Here is my winter combo.

The coat is London Fog, scarf from a store in Shrewsbury, boots
I can't remember what brand (they are the BF's fave), and mittens were a gift.
Here's a close up of the mittens which I think are really cute.

I like that they are both mittens and potential puppets. Who doesn't love spontaneous puppetry?
How do you keep warm in the winter months?